The Role of Counsellor - Assignment Example

VCWK-6 Assignment At some time in every life, they are faced with career transition. Whether it begins with their very first career choiceor a career change later in life, there will be a need for some type of career planning. All clients go through a process of needing a job which is one of the reasons why all counselors should have a working knowledge of career matters. One role for counselors is to have available a list of resources for clients who need career information. This list should include career Internet sources, books, and referrals to mental health counselors. If a client is in need of mental health services, they are able to find them if the counselor has a referral list. Counselors must also let clients know that career planning is a lifelong process and it can be different than a job (Feller, 2006). A career will possibly change over time as new training needs occur for a particular job or the client feels the need for change. Two ways that engaging in career counseling/planning can be valuable to a client includes when they are in career transition and when they are students looking for a college major. In both of these situations, there is a need for reflection and an understanding of the individuals strengths, weaknesses, desires, and personality. A student who is looking for a college major is actually looking for their first career. When they are exiting high school, they are in a placed of wondering what they should do because they do not want to let their parents down, and they want to pick the "right" college major (Feller, 2006). For these students, a career counselor can assist so that the student is able to identify choices from a series of career tests. In working with a career counselor, the student needs to clarify any myths they have about jobs/career planning and understand that career planning happens over their lifespan (Feller, 2006). Adults who are in career transition can benefit from career planning for many of the same reasons. As an example, an adult who finds themselves laid off form a job may find career/vocational counseling valuable to identify how their skills and abilities can be transferred to a different career. The career counselor can help the adult in transition find a fit in a new position. There can be many challenges while engaging in career/vocational counseling. In many cases, students do not have career planning in secondary school. This can mean that they do not have an understanding of career planning and may not understand their options for college or careers (Feller, 2006). I would help secondary students find other outlets for career matters like outside career counselors or the public library. Another challenge in this area is working with adults who are dissatisfied with their job. When they are dissatisfied, they can have challenges with "Depression, anxiety, [and] worry" (Feller, 2006, p. 186) and other mental health challenges. They can also have heart problems, problems with drugs or alcohol, and some have a tendency towards suicide (Feller, 2006). In order to address these challenges, I would help clients understand how their skills and abilities can transfer to other careers or I would help them identify why they were dissatisfied to see whether there is a way they can find satisfaction. Reference Feller, R.W. (2006). Developing comprehensive career development plans for your clients in Capuzzi, D., and Stauffer, M.D. (Eds). Career counseling: Foundations, perspectives and applications. pps. 178-203. MA: Pearson Assignment 3 Darren comes to career counseling with a need to find a new career. He has worked in the area of architecture as a landscape architect. He has difficulty getting along with his supervisors and he has a high level of anxiety when he is confronted with challenging tasks (Niles, Goodman and Pope, 2001). These presenting problems are also difficult for Daren because he is going through a divorce. Darrens family has been his sole support for a year because he lost his job. Darren comes to career counseling because he feels he wants to change his career to something that uses his skills and abilities. Stage 1 Exploration In Darrens case, it would be important for the career counselor to build a therapeutic relationships with Darren so that he would easily tell his story. Darren would be very comfortable knowing that someone was listening to him who was interested in his needs. The counselor would build this rapport by actively listening, asking open-ended questions, and reflecting the clients feelings (Niles, Goodman and Pope , 2001). Building rapport would be the focus. I would have him take the appropriate assessments (SDS, MBTI and the COPS tests) to help him discover a variety of careers that would be interesting to them. Stage 2 Insights This stage would be focused on helping Darrren come to terms about himself and his situation. He already understands that he does not like being told what to do, because of his statement about not getting along well with supervisors (Niles, Goodman, and Pope, 2001). I would focus on the divorce/custody hearing in terms of how it has affected him in attempting to find another job. The divorce could influence what he is experiencing now in the career counseling setting. I would ask more open-ended questions in this stage. I would want to help clarify his values. I would want to know which activities and experiences were important to him and how they related to his career search and ultimate job satisfaction (Feller, 2006). I would have him explore several careers that were identified through his career assessments. I would use challenges, interpretations, self-disclosure, and immediacy as tools to help Darren move forward (Niles, Goodman, and Pope, 2001). Stage 3 Action At this stage, I would have Darren create a new resume and begin to look for jobs in the areas he has identified as those that are most interesting. We may need to do role plays for job interviews so that he is comfortable explaining his skills and abilities and how they match the new career. I would also help him evaluate any ideas that he has and help him create other ideas that are important to him. I would think that Darren also needs to build confidence when he moves forward into a different career and find ways to handle working with a boss. Other Considerations Darrens psychological status would be assessed to rule out depression or anxiety as a challenge. He does mention that he has anxiety under stress so I would want to see if there is a problem. If he has depression/anxiety as an issue, I would refer him to his primary care physician for treatment. We would explore Darrens personal relationships. I would want to know about the divorce, why it was happening, and what he was feeling as it impacts his life and career; I would also explore his relationships with supervisors. I would look at his self-esteem and how it may be limiting his progress. I would help him find ways to express himself that make him feel good about himself. References Feller, R.W. (2006). Developing comprehensive career development plans for your clients in Capuzzi, D., and Stauffer, M.D. (Eds). Career counseling: Foundations, perspectives, and applications. pps. 191-193. Niles, S.G., Goodman, J., and Pope, M. (2001). The career counseling casebook: A resource for students, practitioners, and counselor educators. Pp. 231-235. Broken Arrow, OK: Development Association. Read More